What makes Maro so super?

Maro Itoje’s rise and rise has been an inevitability. In his autobiography, Eddie Jones describes the 25-year-old’s motivation: “I’ve learned that Itoje wants to be more than a good player. He wants to be the best.” If fellow lock George Kruis can often be undervalued, appreciation of Itoje’s performances is sometimes compromised by heady expectations. But he has been supreme in victories over Scotland and Ireland to haul England’s Six Nations back on track. What, though, are his attributes? Charlie Morgan reports

Hollywood moments

A “strip-sack” in American football occurs when a defender fights through the line of scrimmage to collar the opposing team’s quarterback and rip away the ball before they can sling a pass downfield.

Itoje has not exactly been revolutionary in bringing this practice into rugby union. However, his strike-rate of stripping rivals in the tackle has been astonishing throughout his young career to date.

Using his wingspan and explosive athleticism – attributes that scouts would have been evaluating in prospective defensive linemen from colleges around America at last week’s NFL combine – he has pulled off these steals for Saracens, England and the British and Irish Lions.

David Kilcoyne was one rival to be relieved of possession by what has become a signature move for Itoje. Just after half-time, the Ireland prop barrelled towards England’s 22. Itoje wrapped him up and robbed the ball with a powerful right hand.

During this Six Nations, Itoje has also lurked around the fringes of rucks before pouncing towards opposition scrum-halves. Again, his reach is the primary weapon. He has forced eight turnovers from a total of 50 tackles across three matches. That represents a remarkably destructive ratio.

Intelligent, targeted disruption

Further out in midfield, Itoje has become adept at identifying the intended recipient of passes and swimming past any decoy runners to make manand-ball tackles far behind the gain-line. Twice in recent weeks, against France as Teddy Thomas broke clear off the shoulder of Antoine Dupont and as Ireland spread the ball wide in the final stages, Itoje’s over-exuberance has been exploited. Mostly, though, he has weighed up risk and reward very nicely.

“He’s a nuisance around the breakdown and so physical off the line,” explained Ben Youngs last week. “He made some great, dominant hits [against Ireland]. That probably becomes infectious to other people.”

Itoje’s rowdy counter-rucking and charge-down attempts are particularly influential as other sides are clearing from inside their own 22, because ripple effects of a rushed kick can be so damaging.

It was no coincidence that Jonathan Joseph made his dancing break last weekend after Itoje had grappled with CJ Stander and James Ryan at the preceding breakdown.

From the base of a messy ruck and under pressure from George Kruis, Conor Murray’s clearance was poor and England could launch a counter. Everything is connected.

Later in the first period, as Murray aimed to hoist a high ball towards Joseph, a stand-in wing, Itoje blocked the box-kick down.

Ireland were not pleased about it, but referee Jaco Peyper was of the opinion that England’s defensive talisman had started behind the

offside line.

His strike-rate of stripping rivals in the tackle has been astonishing in his young career to date

Line-out nuances

Itoje marshalled England’s line-out during the World Cup semi-final victory over New Zealand. Jones had picked a starting side containing two specialist jumpers in Itoje and Courtney Lawes, with Tom Curry as an auxiliary option.

New Zealand boasted four of them – Sam Whitelock, Brodie Retallick, Scott Barrett and Kieran Read. Although club colleague Kruis and Steve Borthwick will have helped the pre-match analysis and strategy, Itoje called the shots with variety and clarity to frustrate the All Blacks.

One piece of line-out defence in the early stages of England’s win over Ireland epitomised his intuition. Rob Herring aimed towards jumper Peter O’Mahony at the tail. Itoje lifted Kruis to compete, but then saw that the ball had travelled beyond the 15-metre line. This meant that the line-out was over and there was no offside line, so he released Kruis and stepped across before Ireland had formed a maul to prevent them from gathering momentum.

At the Stade de France, Itoje had possibly been too sharp for his own good.

After causing a spill from Les Bleus, he picked up the ball when it squirted out of the ensuing pile-up.

Nigel Owens penalised him, but there was a viable argument that the situation constituted open play – free from a maul or ruck and with no offside line. That is one of just three penalties that Itoje has conceded during this Six Nations, so his discipline has stayed in check.

Calm leadership

“When they are in amongst it, in the thick of things, sometimes the best leaders might not say much,” Youngs said. “They lead with their actions. Maro is just such a presence within our team.”

Two subtle moments last Sunday demonstrated how Itoje is now able to flit between ferocity and composure. On the stroke of half-time, having muscled a turnover out of Stander, Kyle Sinckler was fired up.

He appeared to mock the Ireland back-rower. Then, as the players headed towards the tunnel, Sinckler jogged towards Stander. Itoje held back his team-mate twice. When Ellis Genge arrived to wreak havoc with

Ireland’s scrum, and Ryan lost his temper, Itoje did the same to his loosehead prop.

Previously a designated enforcer for England, notably between 2016 and 2017, he adopted the role of peacemaker as a tetchy contest threatened to boil over. Interestingly, Jones encourages his players to engage in animated on-field conversations to keep their energy and awareness high during breaks in play – a suggestion of Australian hockey guru Ric Charlesworth.

Itoje is rarely quiet and Jones appreciates his value. Over 37 starts for England and the Lions in Test rugby, Itoje has lasted 80 minutes in all but two games. Those curtailed outings were due to a yellow card against South Africa in 2018 and a knee ligament injury that caused him to limp off in Dublin a year later.

Appetite and industry

Borthwick had to remind himself of Itoje’s age last Wednesday. “Maro’s what… 25, now?” he said, settling on the right number after a pause. “It already feels like he’s been around for a very long time.” It does. Jones’s lieutenant, who leaves for Leicester at the end of the Six Nations, saluted Itoje’s appetite for selfimprovement. Peers such as Kruis, the Vunipola brothers and Jamie George, not to mention Retallick and Ryan, are more natural passers. Still, distribution has been one area Itoje has developed. His sheer industry is unquestionable. In his autobiography, Warren Gatland praised an “extraordinary engine” after observing it close up as Lions head coach in 2017. Jones believes Itoje has added “constructive” aspects to balance out his “destructive” capabilities. No player in the current Six Nations has cleared more attacking rucks than the 85 Itoje has registered so far. He definitely contributes when England are in possession.

No player in the current Six Nations has cleared more attacking rucks than the 85 from Itoje